Population Growth

Palm Beach County ranks second in population growth since The 1990 Census. COUNTY POPULATION GAIN Broward 164,178 Palm Beach 140,181 Dade 133,379 Orange 125,897 Hillsborough 94,499 SOURCE: University of Florida 1997 population count

More than one in five residents of Broward and Palm Beach counties is Hispanic, but that hasn't translated into power at city halls, county commissions or in Tallahassee and Washington, D.C. Only a handful of the two counties' elected officials are Hispanic - and the numbers won't change much, if at all, in the 23 cities, towns and villages holding elections on March 12. “We need more Hispanics in the elected positions,” said Julio Fuentes,...

More than one in five residents of Broward and Palm Beach counties is Hispanic, but that hasn't translated into power at city halls, county commissions or in Tallahassee and Washington, D.C. Only a handful of the two counties' elected officials are Hispanic - and the numbers won't change much, if at all, in the 23 cities, towns and villages holding elections on March 12. “We need more Hispanics in the elected positions,” said Julio Fuentes,...

Florida's economy will finally build some steam in 2013, according to a new forecast released Tuesday by University of Central Florida economist Sean Snaith. The Fort Lauderdale metro area is expected to show moderate growth, with employment expanding at an average of 1.8 percent each year. Unemployment is forecast to be 8.4 percent (which is the September rate). South Florida's fastest-growing sector will be construction at 5.5 percent annually, followed by business and professional services at 4.3 percent.

Population growth, once the reliable engine of Florida's economy, has sputtered in recent years but will rev up again in the near future, the University of Florida predicted Monday. The state's weak job market will slow population growth for the next couple of years, said Stan Smith, director of UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research. Florida's unemployment rate of 10.8 percent is fourth-highest in the nation, a reality that means job seekers have little reason to move here.

Despite an overall slowing of world population growth, the burgeoning millions in poor countries threaten much of the globe with starvation, environmental catastrophe and political chaos, according to a report released on Tuesday. World population, now estimated at 5.9 billion, is expected to level off at 9.4 billion in 2050 _ down from a 1994 projection of 11 billion. But that decline in growth still will not prevent shortages in food, water and energy resources, said the report by the Population Institute, a private Washington group that advocates family planning.

Broward County got knocked out of the top 10 nationally in population growth from 2001 to 2002, while neighboring Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties moved up in the rankings, estimates released today by the U.S. Census Bureau show. Broward ranks 12th in growth after making the top 10 list virtually every year since 1993. Only in 1999 did the county slide to 11th place. Miami-Dade, which ranked 11th nationally, grew by 32 more people than Broward. Palm Beach County ranked 14th in the amount of population increase, up four spots from the previous year.

During the 1980s, once-rural Parkland's population grew from 545 to a community of 3,773. It has more than doubled since 1990 - to 7,876 residents. Walt Denahan remembers the days when Parkland was a place where you could see foxes, bobcats and panthers - the four-legged kind that love the wilderness. Today, he says, it's a city of Cougars, Mustangs and Jaguars - the four-wheeled kind that hug the road. Between 1990 and this year, Parkland had the highest percentage of population growth of any city in Broward County, according to a new report.

The birth of octuplets in Houston last month immediately reignited sharp debates over issues as varied as fertility drugs, the cost of hospital care for multiple births and medical privacy rights. Most Americans would agree that such debates are desirable, if uncomfortable. But a far more obvious issue continues to be largely neglected. When it comes to population growth writ large, silence can be disastrous -- if not here and now, then certainly down the road. Let us stipulate from the outset that babies are wonderful, either as abstractions or as warm butterballs of joy to be held in one's arms.

When George Washington took the oath of the presidency in 1789, each of the 65 members of the inaugural Congress represented roughly 30,000 people. As the population of the country grew, it became necessary to reflect those changes in the representation of congressional and state legislative districts. So it was decided that every 10 years after the census - the first of which was taken in 1790 - additional congressional districts would be added to accommodate the growing population.

When George Washington took the oath of the presidency in 1789 each of the 65 members of the inaugural Congress represented roughly 30,000 people. As the population of the country grew it became necessary to reflect those changes in the representation of congressional and state legislative districts. So it was decided that every 10 years after the census - the first of which was taken in 1790 - additional congressional districts would be added to accommodate the growing population.

Florida ranked third among states in job growth in 2011, following California and Texas, according to Labor Department data released Tuesday. Since December 2010, Florida added nearly 114,000 jobs. California gained 263,000 and Texas 204,500 over the year. Payroll employment increased in 25 states and the District of Columbia, according to the Labor Department. In December, Florida didn't fare as well, gaining only 7,300 jobs. Texas added the most jobs, 20,200, during the month, followed by Indiana's 15,100 and California's 10,700.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Florida had the nation's third largest population growth in the past year. The U.S. Census reported this week that Florida grew by 256,000 residents from April 2010 to July 2011. Texas and California were the only states with larger growth. Florida now has 19.1 million residents, making it the nation's fourth most populous state. Florida is within striking distance of surpassing New York in population size. All it takes is an additional 400,000 residents.

Florida's job and housing recovery are so intertwined that the housing outlook won't improve until unemployment does, says Sean Snaith, economist at the University of Central Florida, in his long-term Florida forecast released Wednesday. Snaith calls the labor market "the lynchpin for Florida's overall economic health. " As unemployment falls, so will the number of foreclosures. Also, more employed Floridians means more potential buyers for homes on the market, he says.

Population growth, once the reliable engine of Florida's economy, has sputtered in recent years but will rev up again in the near future, the University of Florida predicted Monday. The state's weak job market will slow population growth for the next couple of years, said Stan Smith, director of UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research. Florida's unemployment rate of 10.8 percent is fourth-highest in the nation, a reality that means job seekers have little reason to move here.

Browad and Miami-Dade County population posted gains last year, another sign of a fragile economic recovery, according to a University of Florida researcher. The slight increase follows a statewide trend that had Florida's population grow by a barely noticeable 0.1 percent. But the new residents signal a welcome reversal from the declines measured during an economic downturn that interrupted more than 50 years of consecutive growth for the Sunshine State. "Two years ago, the economy was deteriorating rapidly, while over the past year there have been some signs that it is leveling off or even improving slightly," said Stan Smith, director of UF's Bureau of Economic and Business Research.